Ribat (Monastery fortress),
in the middle of the Medina, was built in 796 and was considered as one of the
most important in Maghrebi Islam. It draws a square of 38-meter side with 3 half
circle towers in the middle of 3 small yards and 4 angle towers. Among them, you
have the Nador (look-out tower) built in 821. |
The grand mosque was built in 851, under the reign of aghlabid
Emir Aboul Abbas Mohammed as indicated by a coufi writing on the gallery in front
of prayer hall. The big mosque is placed probably on the area where the first
844 fortified Kasbah was. Thus, the grand mosque kept the defensive character:
still remaining 2 angle towers used as rig for war machines and merlons in the
surrounding walls.
In fact, at the origin, the mosque with nearby Ribat took part
in the defence of the port and its arsenal. As the mosque has never had a real
minaret, the north-east tower was topped by a lantern and replaced the missing
minaret. The grand mosque’s yard is surrounded by porticos held on pillars.
They were all built in the IXth century only the southern gallery was added in
1675. The prayer hall has 13 naves and 3 spans in vault lying on cruciform pillars.
In XIth century, the area of prayer hall is doubled by drawing back the wall of
quibla (It shows the direction of Mecca) and adding 3 higher spans in semi-circular
vault with sassanide-inspired ribs. In front of the Mihrab (rebuilt
in XIth century), a simple zirid dome opens. In the centre
of the hall, you have a dome from aghlabid era (IXth century) which lies on coquille
squinches and embellished with stylised and embossed flower decoration. It is
the oldest witness of Muslim sculpture of the city. Tympans are decorated with
sculptured draughtboard. Kasbah is a fortified citadel located in a particularly
strategic point of the Medina. It is characterized by the high tower Khalef (8-meter
basis and 30-meter high, prototype of aghlabid minarets) crenellated and consists
of two superposed parts which had a defensive and signal role (manar). It was
also used as a lighthouse. This tower (dates from 859) is the centre around which
were built in successive phases (XIth, XIIIth and XVIIIth centuries) the buildings
forming now a part of the Kasbah. The surrounding walls run over 2,250 kilometres.
Originally, they included the port and the arsenal. They had 8 doors, only 3 remained:
Bab El Gharbi (western door), Bab El Djedid (eastern door) and Bab El Bahr (Sea’s
door which was built when ships used to get in an internal port of the city).
The walls were rebuilt in 859 by the freed Khalef on the ruins of the ramparts
of Justinianopolis. The archaeological museum, located in the fortress looking
over the Medina, has the second largest Tunisian collection of mosaic after the
one of Bardo museum in Tunis. But the most important is the one holding precious
mosaic of IInd and IIIrd centuries. They were delicately worked and recall scenes
of everyday life and mythology. The Medina, or city in Arabic, is worth visiting
with its typical streets and souks. |
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